The Community Vaccination Centre at the Council’s Ty Trevithick office in Abercynon is expanding, with capacity being increased as well as the centre operating seven days a week.
Working in partnership with Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board, the Council’s Ty Trevithick office in Abercynon has been remodelled and is now being used as a Covid-19 Community Vaccination Centre.
So far, the Community Vaccination Centre has vaccinated thousands of individuals who work in front line health and social care, including staff from the Welsh Ambulance Service Trust.
By expanding capacity at Ty Trevithick, and the centre operating seven days a week, it will provide even more vaccinations than was previously possible, meaning more people can be vaccinated and more quickly.
This good news follows the announcement that RCT Council’s Rhondda Sports Centre, Ystrad, will be used as a Covid-19 Community Vaccination Centre from 25 January which will also operate seven days a week. Other sites are also being planned to open in the coming weeks, and updates will be provided on these once they are confirmed.
To further support the Covid-19 vaccine roll-out, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council is actively training staff to administer the Covid-19 vaccine, allowing NHS staff to continue to deliver vital care for those who need it most in hospital.
People are reminded that they must be invited to have a vaccination and have an appointment to attend. No one should visit the venue unless they already have a vaccination appointment. This is because the Covid-19 vaccine is currently being rolled out in priority order based on the level of risk faced by different groups from Covid-19.
The groups to be prioritised are decided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation at a UK level. This priority list is as follows:
1. residents in a care home for older adults and their carers
2. all those 80 years of age and over and frontline health and social care workers
3. all those 75 years of age and over
4. all those 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable individuals
5. all those 65 years of age and over
6. all individuals aged 16 years to 64 years with underlying health conditions which put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality
7. all those 60 years of age and over
8. all those 55 years of age and over
9. all those 50 years of age and over
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation advises that the first priorities for the COVID-19 vaccination programme should be the prevention of death and the maintenance of the health and social care systems. As the risk of death from COVID-19 increases with age, prioritisation is primarily based on age. It is estimated that taken together, these groups represent around 99% of preventable deaths from COVID-19.
As well as helping to support the roll-out by providing Covid-19 Vaccination Centres, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council is providing administrative support for the vaccine roll-out, by assisting with contacting people and booking their vaccine appointments. This helps to relieve pressure on NHS colleagues, who can continue with their vital work to support patients during this critical time.
RCT Council staff are also providing on-the ground support to NHS partners at the Community Vaccination Centres, such as helping to register those receiving their vaccination, and helping the process run as smoothly as possible.
Councillor Andrew Morgan, Leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council, said: “Rhondda Cynon Taf Council will do all we can to support the roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine, which is crucial to helping us bring this health emergency to an end, and also to support our colleagues in the NHS so they can continue to care for those who need their help the most.
“The establishment of a Covid-19 Community Vaccination Centre in the Council offices at Ty Trevithick, and expanding the capacity and operational hours at the site, as well as establishing a Community Vaccination Centre at Rhondda Sports Centre, will further help to deliver the vaccine to more people in a shorter time.
“Further to this, we have worked in partnership with Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board and identified sites to establish more Covid-19 Vaccination Centres across the County Borough, which we expect to become active over the coming weeks. We will be able to provide more details on these soon.
“Residents can be assured that Rhondda Cynon Taf Council and Cwm Taf Morgannwg UHB are working in partnership to deliver the vaccine roll-out as fast as possible for residents, and we will continue to work in partnership to achieve the vaccination goals.
“Thousands of vaccinations have already been administered in Rhondda Cynon Taf, and this will only continue to increase. RCT Council will provide any support we can to support our partners in the NHS to deliver the Covid-19 vaccine faster and to more people.
“We understand how difficult it has been for residents having to face significant restrictions on their daily lives, and we thank everyone who has complied with these over the last 10 months.
“The vaccine provides us with a route out of this health emergency, but until the majority of people have been vaccinated, and especially while we continue to roll out to those groups who at most at risk from the virus, we must all continue to follow the measures put in place to protect the health of ourselves and those around us, such as continuing to social distance, to wash our hands regularly, and wearing a mask were required or where there are other people.”
Paul Mears, Chief Executive of Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board, said: “These two community vaccination centres and our on-going partnership with Rhondda Cynon Taf Council, means we are on course to achieve our aim to have vaccinated everyone in the top four priority groups in RCT by mid-February. We have already administered 12,000 vaccines to RCT residents.
“I would like to thank everyone for your patience as all of us work together to deliver the biggest vaccination programme Wales has ever seen. When it’s your turn, we will contact you to book your appointment.”
